Gravity Featurette Reveals How Alfonso Cuaron Made Movie Magic

For the most part, I choose to believe that Alfonso Cuaron’s Gravity is magic. Not just "movie magic," which somehow brings our imaginations to life on screen. But actual magic. I’ve screened the film numerous times, and I can’t see the usual seams that exist in blockbuster pictures, the moments where you look at a scene and say, "Oh, there’s where they filmed against green screen" or "You can practically see the wires in that shot."

Instead, I’m convinced that Cuaron somehow blasted Sandra Bullock and George Clooney into the stratosphere, then coached them on how to act in Zero-G conditions, creating the most believable space drama audiences have ever seen. Sadly, the video above (shared via The Hollywood Reporter) proves this isn’t the case. Cuaron filmed in various studios, and his cast had their feet planted firmly on the ground. Usually.

The clip says Gravity is all about adversity. Yet, the movie has faced very little since opening in theaters in October. Reviews were overwhelmingly positive. The movie boasts a 97% Fresh grade on Rotten Tomatoes, with only 8 misguided fools giving it a rotten score. Financially speaking. Gravity is the sixth-highest grossing movie of 2013, banking $253 million domestically and $652M worldwide. All of the movies above Gravity on the box-office charts are sequels. For those who adore wholly original sci-fi storytelling, Gravity is a godsend.

The purpose of the video, as you might imagine, is to put Cuaron’s accomplishment back on the radars of Oscar voters as we head into the final days of this year. The movie recently collected 10 nominations from the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, but was topped by American Hustle and 12 Years a Slave, Oscar contenders who collected 13 noms a piece. Gravity should find its way into the major Oscar categories when those nominations are released. But behind-the-scenes featurettes like this remind Oscar voters of the amount of craft that does into a magic act like Gravity. I pray that it is rewarded with Oscar’s blessings, but understand that this is a very crowded year, and the movie already has plenty of victories under its belt.

Looking for more blasts of the movie’s breathtaking visuals? Check out this full trailer, which shows Bullock and her director in their glory.